Shannon Block, president and CEO of the Denver Zoo for the past three years, “is no long leading the cultural institution,” the zoo announced Friday.

Denny O’Malley, a past Denver Zoological Foundation board chairman and long-time president and CEO of Craig Hospital, prior to his retirement in 2009, has been unanimously appointed by the zoo’s Board of Trustees to serve as interim leader, the zoo said in a news release.

“Denver Zoo is operated by a strong management team and staff, and supported by dedicated volunteers and trustees that are passionate about our mission and work,” said Sherri Koelbel, chair of the organization’s Board of Trustees. “Our culture of excellence will continue through this time of transition and beyond.”

Block took the helm in January of 2014. During her tenure, the zoo faced several controversies including abandoning a plan to convert animal waste into energy and a fight over providing information to the city’s auditor.

Still, the abandoned plan raised issues between the zoo and the Denver Auditor’s Office.

In April of 2016, Auditor Tim O’Brien said zoo officials had been stonewalling his efforts to audit the zoo, which he had been pursuing for months.

A long-awaited city audit of the Denver Zoo was released in January. The abandoned waste conversion plan cost the zoo $3.5 million, according to the auditor’s report. The zoo eventually took a $1.7 million write-off on its accounting records.

Denver Zoo president and CEO Shannon Block speaks to the media Friday, September 25, 2015 after the zoo announced that it would scrap plans for a plant to convert elephant dung and other waste to energy.

Block wrote, in part: “Our mission is clear: to secure a better world for animals through human understanding. Strengthening the public’s understanding of the important role accredited zoos play in animal welfare, science education and species and habitat conservation is paramount in moving forward with our mission.”

Kieran Nicholson covers breaking news for The Denver Post. He started at the Post in 1986, at the old building on 15th and California streets. Nicholson has covered a variety of beats including suburbs, courts, crime and general assignment.

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